Tui UK has confirmed it move further into the dynamic packaging sector this summer by seeking deals with low-cost airlines.
Tui Group chief executive Sebastian Ebel said talks with carriers were ongoing with a view to signing contracts “in time for summer”.
“We do not have all low-cost carriers in our market. I’m very pleased that the gaps we have will all be closed in due course,” he said.
“It is our clear target to link direct to the airlines, not through a GDS, and there is a lot to do to improve our competitiveness in going direct with the airlines."
Ebel said the UK was a particular focus for dynamic packaging as the market lagged behind others such as Germany.
“Germany started in 2015, the UK has started very late, unfortunately. Therefore the improvement will be significant in the UK," he told reporters on Tuesday (13 February)
Dynamic packaging will play a key role as Tui moves to reassert itself in the UK and close the gap between itself and UK market leader Jet2.com and Jet2holidays.
MORE: Tui posts first-ever first-quarter profit
Ebel said he saw “a lot of opportunities to improve our position” in the UK market. “There is a gap between the performance of a competitor and us and we want to close this gap,” he added.
“The potential is significant, dynamic packaging is doing very well and the app sales are developing outstandingly well.”
Overall, Tui’s total dynamic package sales rose 24% year-on-year in the first quarter to 600,000, with app sales comprising 6.6% of all Tui sales.
Tui will use its new technology to press into more markets. "We want to bring Tui into the world; to build a global company, as we see markets that are even more attractive than central Europe," Ebel said.
He named Poland and Czechia (Czech Republic) as emerging markets for Tui and said the brand had started to grow in Spain and Portugal.
“We will go to Italy and South and North America and to Asia; there is a lot to come,” he said.
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